196,703 research outputs found
Accounting and the Restoration of Pastoral Power in the 15th-century Roman Catholic Church
No full textInformed by the work of Foucault on pastoral power the chapter examines the genealogical core of governmentality in the context of the Roman Catholic Church at a time of great crisis in the 15th century. The contributions of accounting to pastoral power have been pivotal in restoring the Church’s standing and influence. Accounting was one of the technologies that allowed the bishops to control both the diocese as a whole and each priest, to subjugate the priests to the bishops’ authority and, thereby, to govern the diocese through a never-ending extraction of truth
The Imperative of Power: Accounting in Diverse Settings
No full textThe chapter recognizes the significant contributions of Italian, Spanish and Portuguese researches in studying accounting as a socially constructed practice. In particular, it explores how Italian and Iberian scholars have contributed to unmasking the seemingly benign appearance of accounting practices which makes them invaluable as a tool in the exercise of power for institutions as diverse as the Church and the State and the Empires. It also provides an overview of the chapters included in the book
Accounting and the Diffusion of Sacred Values in the Diocese of Ferrara (1431-1457)
No full textInformed by the work of Laughlin and Booth, the chapter analyzes the role of accounting and accountability practices within the 15th century Roman Catholic Church. Secular accounting and accountability practices were not regarded as necessarily antithetical to religious values, as would be expected by Laughlin and Booth. Instead, they were seen to assume a role which was complementary to the Church’s religious mission. Indeed, they were essential to its sacred mission during a period in which the Pope sought to arrest the moral decay of the clergy and reinstate the Church’s authority
Accounting and the Management of Power: Napoleon's Occupation of the Commune of Ferrara
No full textThis study, which is informed by Foucault’s concept of governmentality, identifies the systematic ties between political discourse, forms of rationality and technologies of government during the first period that Napoleon governed Ferrara in northern Italy (1796–99). The study identifies a decoupling between ‘political discourses, rhetoric and language’ and the use of ‘technologies of government’. The results enhance understanding of the translation of politics and power into a set of administrative tasks and calculative practices to secure power in modern public sector settings today. In the neo-liberal prescriptions for the modern State which demand a much diminished role and presence for the government in the lives of its citizens, societies, organizations and their management are tending to be more and more concerned with surveillance made operable through power
Accounting and expropriation of Jewish property in Fascist Italy 1939-1945
No full textThe Jewish anihilation by German Nazis constituted a gigantic murderous operation that passed also through the social and economic destruction. Not only Nazi Germany was the author of such operation, but also Fascist Italy, starting from the racial laws of 1939, resulted on restrictions of rights of Italian Jews such the confiscation of their properties
Accounting and the enactment of power: Municipal Reform by Peter Leopold 1774-1775
No full textPurpose – The purpose of this study is to understand the enduring, fundamental contributions of accounting practices in the pursuit of decentralization by governments, with an examination of Peter Leopold’s Reform of the Municipalities in the late 18th century in Italy.
Design/methodology/approach – An extensive textual analysis of the very comprehensive collection of primary sources of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany during the de’ Medici and Hapsburg-Lorraine’s rule identified the reasons for Peter Leopold’s decision to decentralize his government’s authority and responsibilities. A systemic comparison of the 1765-66 and 1775-76 financial reports of the Municipality of Castrocaro and Terra del Sole disclosed the importance of the micro-practices of accounting and reporting for the Reform.
Findings – In the context of the 18th century Enlightenment, Peter Leopold legitimized his Reform by the introduction of a modern style of government based on the rationalisation of the municipal administrative system and decentralization of central authority and responsibility. The Reform was made feasible by the substitution of a birth right principle with an economic discourse which linked tax payments to property ownership. This had the unintended consequence of increased taxes, higher municipal expenditures, and possible inequalities between municipalities.
Research limitations/implications – The findings of the study are dependent on the resources which have survived and are now preserved in the official archives of Galeata and Florence. This work contributes to the extant literature on administrative reforms in a crucial period for the redefinition of sovereignty by the ruling classes, with the rise of the modern State. It extends historical understanding of the public sector with a focus on local government in the 18th century in a non-Anglo-Saxon context.
Practical implications – Examination of the Reform of Peter Leopold contributes to an enhanced understanding of present-day decentralization by governments in the context of the new public management (NPM). It provides to NPM advocates a broader temporal and contextual understanding of the impact of current decentralization reforms.
Originality/value – Few accounting studies have considered the micro-aspects of decentralization reforms at the municipal level and tried to identify their impact on the wealth of the population. Moreover, Peter Leopold’s Reform is considered one of the most innovative and enlightened of the 18th century, while the remainder of Europe was still overwhelmingly committed to the centralization of administrative apparatuses. Finally, this study relates to the multi-disciplinary debate about the recognition, qualification and accountization of the impact of decentralization of responsibility for the delivery of government services
Popular culture and totalitarianism. Accounting for propaganda in Italy under the Fascist regime (1934–1945)
No full textThroughout history, both democratic and totalitarian States have sought to take advantage of the possible political contributions of art and culture. This chapter presents the first in-depth historical study of the relationship between accounting and culture in a totalitarian State; the Fascist State in Italy between 1934 and 1945. Accounting documents in the form of budgets and reports provided by the Fascist government, along with other accounts prepared by the Fascists, were used to build a narrative that identified the ways in which the Fascist regime sought to rally the Italian people around new values such as nationalism and hatred for the “Other”, which led to the persecution of Jews. Accounting documents and the cultural activities to which they relate show the ways in which the Fascists developed their own conception of popular culture and sought control of cultural organisations and intellectuals in spreading their values and beliefs through cultural artefacts
Accounting for control of Italian culture in the Fascist Ethical State: the Alla Scala Opera House
No full textPurpose: The study focusses on the complex interaction between ideological beliefs, culture and accounting by identifying during Benito Mussolini's time in power the contributions of accounting to the Italian Fascist repertoire of power in the cultural domain. It emphasises the importance of accounting in making the Alla Scala Opera House in Milan a vital institution in the creation of a Fascist national culture and identity which was meant to define the Fascist “Ethical State”. Design/methodology/approach: The study adopts the Foucauldian concept of discourse in analysing the accounting practices of the Alla Scala Opera House. Findings: Financial statements and related commentaries prepared by the Alla Scala Opera House were not primarily for ensuring good management and the minimisation of public funding in contrast to the practices and expectations of accounting in liberal States. Instead, the dominant Fascist discourse shaped the content and use of accounting and ensured that accounting practices could be a means to construct the Opera House as a “moral individual” that was to serve wider national interests consistent with the priorities of the Fascist Ethical State. Research limitations/implications: The study identifies how accounting can be mobilised for ideological purposes in different ways which are not limited to supporting discourses inspired by logics of efficiency and profit. The paper also draws attention to the contributions of accounting discourses in shaping the identity of an organisation consistent with the priorities of those who hold the supreme authority in a society. Social implications: The analysis of how the Fascist State sought to reinforce its power by making cultural institutions a critical part of this process provides the means to understand and unmask the taken-for-granted way in which discourses are created to promote power relations and related interests such as in the rise of far-right movements, most especially in weaker and more vulnerable countries at present. Originality/value: Unlike most of the work on the relationship between culture and accounting which has emphasised liberal States, this study considers a non-liberal State and documents a use of accounting in the cultural domain which was not limited to promoting efficiency consistent with the priorities now recognised more recently of the New Public Management. It presents a micro-perspective on accounting as an ideological discourse by investigating the role of accounting in the exploitation of a cultural institution for political purposes
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